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(No Model.)

J. S. MBLLON.

GALVANIG SHOE.

No. 407,673. Patented July 23, 1889.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

.lOllN S. MELLON, F HT. LUUIS, MlSSOi'ltl, ASSIGNUR 0F SIX-'IENTHS TO (l. lV. LEWIS, 0F SAlll'l PLACE.

GALVANIC SHOE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 407,673, dated July 23, 1889.

Applicatien filed April l.J i889.

To (LIZ whom it 711111; concern:

lle it known that I, JoHN S. lllELnoN,aeiti Zen ot' the United States, residingr at the city oli' St. Louis, in the State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Shoes and other Foot Appliances, ol" which the following' is a speciiimition, reference being had tothe accompanying'drawings and claims.

My invention relates io healih-snstainine appliances, in particular to appliances which are calculated to generate. induet, and ed net electrical currents in connection with the human system, and to equalize sueh currents between it and thc earth.

It consists in providing shoes and other foot appliances with metallic conductors and generators of electricity or galvanism and eonneeling the human system theretlirong'h with the `ground, so that the electriealeondition existing between the body and the earth may be kept in` harmony with each other.'

The objects ol my invention areio cure the alllieted and to improve the public health.

The accompanying drawings illustrate my n'ieehanieal devices for attainingr these ohjects.

Figure l is a perspective view ct' an ordinary slipper-shoe. Fig. L is a. longiiudinal vertical section ol' the saine. Fig. Il is a detail section ci a solid rivet. Fie'. l is a detail section ol' a hollow rivet.

Similar letters refer to like paris throughout the several views.

Relative tothe use of ditferentkinds ol' metallie rivets, the scope ol' this invention is to provide both conductors and generators of the electric and galvanie forces in this device. Such constitute the bases of my invention. There fore it is desirabletoadapt the numb eroi? galvanie pairs in toot-wear to theindividnals condition under treatment, which can he aecomplished by ineri'fasing or diminishing' the numberot` Q;alvanie pairs in foot-wear hy makingl them in this manner.

My mechanical device in one torinemlsisis of one or more nieiallie rivets inserted into holes made through the suri'aeeol' a shoe-sole e :,as shown in Figui These may he ol.' like or different kinds olf metahas one of zine and another ol1 copper, or otherwise. They may be solid rivets, as in Fig'. l, or hollow, as in Serial No. 305,597. I'No model.)

Fig. l. Their ends inside of the shoe should be flattened to correspond with the inside snriaee of the shoe-sole, and their outer ends should be flattened and finished in a similar way. 1n addition to these rivets and cornhined with them I make use of one, or more metallic plaies o o, (shown in the same ligure,) which are in the l'ormof anyordinary inner soles" l'or shoes. These are cui. out ot thin sheet metal and adapted to lit inside of any shoe removably, so they may be taken out or put in readily; or they lnay he securely li'astencd inside of the shoe. For these l prefer sheet copper or zine, and these metals may be used eonjoinily. These metallic soles are placed inside of the shoe, their under surface in Contact with the inner heads of thc rivets, which extend through. the shoe-sole. Thus, to the extent diiierentkindsol metalarc used in these soles and rivets, galvanic elements are formed in pairs, which are adapted to he excited electrically bythe moisture of thesole oi the foot acting against the inner metallic soles, and that coaeting` with the rivets, with which it is in contact in the shoe, while, the outer ends ot' the rivets are in contact with the moist earth, or by standingupon a moistened surface arranged for that purpose. In addition to this, for invalid uses, where they are eonlined to beds or unable to be about on fooi, I make use et this combined device by connecting the sluwe-plate with the groundhy a metallic` conductor h, which may he copper wire, with or without thc ground plant l1, as shown in Fig, 2. ln order toaeeoinplish this, the gronini-comlnebm' l may be attached to the metallic sole o. in any suitable way,or, as shown, by thrusting a pointu. of theinner metallic sole through the leather of the shoe and connecting it to the ground by the eenduelor h, as shown. lVhen used by bed-ridden or greatly-enl`eebled persons, the ground eondnetirig-wire l; or o may belong enough lo extend from wherever the individual is located ont oi' a window or down through floors io the ground, in which thcground end should be buried suiiieiently to be in moist earth. lly this means any kind ot' slipper or footwear eau he worn and nscd to accomplish the benelicial objects ol this invention.

li is bewoningl more and more known that LGs IOO

electricity plays an important part in nature. The earth is the source of our physical system. Many diseases result from unnaturnl electrical conditions. 'Ey keeping these vin harmony with those of the earth we can live in health.

I am aware of numerous electrical devieeel for health-giving purposes. I therefore disclaim all others now known in the arhexeept as herein described, and ask thatlietters Paitent be granted to me for my present invention and the following claims:

l. The combination consisting of the shoe,

the metallic inner sole, and the metallic rivets inserted through and in combination with the 1 shoe-sole, as and for the purposesmentioned, 2. The combination consisting of the shoe, the metallic inner sole,the metallic rivets inserted through and in combination with the shoe-solo, and the metallic ground-connection zo af', i1, and D', :1s Stated herein.

JOHN S. MELLON. Vv'itnesses:

ll. M. THOMPSON, J ENNIE E. MELLoN. 

